Isaiah 54:8 kjv
In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.
Isaiah 54:8 nkjv
With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; But with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you," Says the LORD, your Redeemer.
Isaiah 54:8 niv
In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you," says the LORD your Redeemer.
Isaiah 54:8 esv
In overflowing anger for a moment I hid my face from you, but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you," says the LORD, your Redeemer.
Isaiah 54:8 nlt
In a burst of anger I turned my face away for a little while.
But with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,"
says the LORD, your Redeemer.
Isaiah 54 8 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Isa 54:8 | In a little while I forsook you, but with great mercies will I gather you. | God's temporary abandonment and subsequent regathering of His people. |
| Jer 3:12 | Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the LORD; and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you: for I am merciful, and will not keep anger for ever. | God's assurance of mercy and a plea for return from backsliding. |
| Psa 30:5 | For his anger is but for a moment; his favour is lifelong: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. | The transience of God's anger versus the lasting nature of His favor. |
| Hos 1:10 | Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the children of the living God. | Prophecy of Israel's future restoration and numerousness, becoming God's people. |
| John 3:16 | For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. | God's immense love demonstrated through the gift of His Son, leading to eternal life. |
| Rom 5:8 | But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. | God's love is proven by Christ's atoning death for sinners. |
| 2 Cor 1:3 | Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; | God is the source of all mercies and comfort. |
| Eph 2:4-5 | But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, by grace ye are saved; | God's rich mercy and love quickened believers with Christ. |
| 1 Pet 1:3 | Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, | God's abundant mercy gives a living hope through Christ's resurrection. |
| Ps 89:14 | Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face. | God's throne is established in righteousness, with mercy and truth preceding Him. |
| Ps 103:8 | The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plentiful in mercy. | The LORD's character: merciful, gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in mercy. |
| Jer 15:1 | Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth: | God's declaration of judgment despite intercession, highlighting the severity of sin. |
| Isa 43:25 | I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins. | God's initiative to blot out transgressions for His own name's sake. |
| Luke 15:11-32 | The Parable of the Prodigal Son | Illustrates God's immense joy and mercy upon a repentant sinner's return. |
| Zech 1:15 | And I am very surely vexed with the heathen that are at ease: for when I was and a little displeased, they helped forward the affliction. | God's response to His people's affliction at the hands of complacent nations. |
| Eze 39:25 | Thus saith the Lord GOD; Now will I bring again the captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon all the house of Israel, and will be jealous for my holy name; | God's promise to restore Jacob and have mercy, showing jealousy for His holy name. |
| Jer 31:3 | Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. | God's drawing His people with lovingkindness based on His everlasting love. |
| John 10:29 | My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. | Believers are secure in the Father's hand. |
| Heb 12:6 | For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. | God disciplines those He loves, like a father with his children. |
| Matt 18:22 | Then Peter came to him and said, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." | Jesus emphasizes abundant forgiveness. |
Isaiah 54 verses
Isaiah 54 8 Meaning
In a brief moment, I abandoned you, but with great compassion, I will gather you back. The outpouring of My wrath was like a flood that reached your neck, but I will not again inundate you with such devastation.
Isaiah 54 8 Context
This verse appears in Isaiah chapter 54, which is a passage of comfort and restoration directed towards Zion, representing God's people. After describing past distress and judgment (like a woman forsaken and barren), the prophecy shifts to future exultation and expansion. The "little while" of abandonment was the period of Babylonian exile and hardship. God's anger, expressed as a flood, signifies the severe judgment poured out upon them. However, this verse highlights that this period of wrath, though intense, was temporary, and God's ultimate disposition is one of abundant mercy and enduring faithfulness. The context is the promise of God's unwavering love and commitment to re-establish and greatly multiply His people, not through further punitive judgment, but through an overwhelming influx of His grace and compassion.
Isaiah 54 8 Word Analysis
- לְעִתִּ֘ים (lĕʿittîm): This word, meaning "for a little while" or "for a moment," emphasizes the temporary nature of the abandonment. It is derived from עֵת (ʿēt), meaning "time" or "season."
- זָנַ֙חְתִּיךְ (zānachtîḵ): "I forsook/abandoned you." The verb זָנַח (zānach) implies a complete abandonment, often with a sense of rejection. Here, God states He did abandon, but frames it as a limited period.
- וּבְרַחֲמִ֣ים (ūḇəraḥămîm): "and with mercies/compassions." This is the plural of רַחַם (raḥam), often translated as "mercy" or "compassion." The plural emphasizes the abundance and fullness of God's compassionate response.
- אֲקַבֵּ֓ץ (’ăqabbēṣ): "I will gather." The verb קָבַץ (qāḇaṣ) means to gather, collect, or assemble. It signifies a purposeful and complete gathering of the dispersed.
- רָ֚חַף (rāḥap̄): "an outpouring" or "a flood." The root word implies overflowing, surging, or sweeping.
- בְּשֶׁ֥טֶף (bəšēṭep̄): "with an overflow" or "in a flood." It's an intensified form, referring to a sweeping, overwhelming flood. This vividly describes the severity of God's punitive wrath.
- גָּאָ֚ה (gā’āh): "it rose high" or "it surged." This verb, often associated with pride or arrogance, here describes the overwhelming rise of the flood.
- צַוָּארֵךְ (ṣawwārēḵ): "your neck." The neck is a point of vulnerability. The flood reaching the neck suggests the peril was extreme, but not necessarily engulfing and destroying life completely.
- וּבְמַחְצֶ֣ת (ūḇəmaḥṣéṣ): "and by the half/breaking." The noun מחצת (maḥṣeṣ) comes from a root meaning to break or divide. It implies a breaking off or a partial nature to the subsequent destruction, implying a cessation.
- שִׂנְאָ֚ה (śin’āh): "hatred/enmity." Though appearing here, in context of God's promise, it likely relates to the cessation of that active divine opposition/wrath that had been like hatred.
- אֵחַ֣ד (’eḥaḏ): "one" or "again." This word, though seemingly small, indicates that such an overwhelming inundation of wrath will not happen once more or in the same manner again.
Isaiah 54 8 Bonus Section
The imagery of God's anger as a "flood that rose to the neck" is potent. It illustrates a level of divine judgment so severe it threatened to completely submerge and destroy, yet stopped short of total annihilation. This concept resonates with God's sovereign control even in judgment, preserving a remnant for future purposes. This temporary but intense experience of abandonment is often a prelude to a deeper revelation of His unwavering love and redemptive power, mirroring the spiritual journey of many believers who experience God's discipline before sensing His renewing grace. The ultimate fulfillment of "gathering" and cessation of "flood-like" wrath is seen in the spiritual ingathering of all believers through Christ and the permanent removal of God's wrath through His atoning sacrifice on the cross.
Isaiah 54 8 Commentary
This verse encapsulates the divine paradox of judgment followed by overwhelming mercy. God acknowledges a period of severe, even life-threatening, abandonment and wrath poured out upon His people. This was a direct consequence of their sin, experienced most acutely during the Babylonian exile, where His judgment was as an overwhelming flood. However, the verse emphasizes the limited duration of this wrath ("in a little while") and contrasts it sharply with the abundant and enduring nature of His mercy. God, while just, is fundamentally compassionate. He promises to regather His people not with the intent to further punish, but with great tenderness. The assurance that the flood of His wrath will not again reach their neck signifies that such complete and devastating judgment against His covenant people, though it occurred, is not the final word. It foreshadows a restoration marked by profound grace and reconciliation, echoing through Christ's sacrifice which ultimately deals with divine wrath.